Directed by Scott Pasko
April 23-May 29
Athenaeum Theatre, Studio 1
Malcolm Raphelson, a once-lauded painter in the New York art scene, found himself out of favor and out of work when abstract expressionism came into fashion. Some forty years later, he has been rediscovered by art dealer Trevor Fabricant, living in self-inflicted exile in rural Mexico. Installing his former lover Judd as Malcolm’s assistant/babysitter, Fabricant risks everything to facilitate Malcolm’s retrospective return to the art world … if he could only get the embittered artist to cooperate. When Malcolm meets Julia, an American graduate student studying endangered frogs at the nearby lake, he invites her to move in with Judd and himself. Julia’s presence simultaneously inspires and distracts Malcolm, leading to an imbalance in the house, and threatening to compromise his work… and Fabricant’s plans.
A study of human relevance and artistic authenticity, as well as the often-conflicting relationship between art and commerce, Ten Unknowns is a thoughtful, haunting, and often funny play for artists and art appreciators alike.
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Food For Thought (get it? ha!)
“We are scrappy, and we’ll rock your face.” — WAFF
Chicago Premiere
Directed by Scott Pasko
April 23-May 29
Athenaeum Theatre, Studio 1
Malcolm Raphelson, a once-lauded painter in the New York art scene, found himself out of favor and out of work when abstract expressionism came into fashion. Some forty years later, he has been rediscovered by art dealer Trevor Fabricant, living in self-inflicted exile in rural Mexico. Installing his former lover Judd as Malcolm’s assistant/babysitter, Fabricant risks everything to facilitate Malcolm’s retrospective return to the art world … if he could only get the embittered artist to cooperate. When Malcolm meets Julia, an American graduate student studying endangered frogs at the nearby lake, he invites her to move in with Judd and himself. Julia’s presence simultaneously inspires and distracts Malcolm, leading to an imbalance in the house, and threatening to compromise his work… and Fabricant’s plans.
A study of human relevance and artistic authenticity, as well as the often-conflicting relationship between art and commerce, Ten Unknowns is a thoughtful, haunting, and often funny play for artists and art appreciators alike.